Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Today has been a great day! Such fun to be with fellow painters at the vineyard, painting away as if we didn't have a care in the world! By noon it was getting pretty hot so we loaded up our paints and canvases and headed into Paola for lunch and a gallery tour. On the way we stopped at Wea Creek, a beautiful creek with flowing water over rocks, making for a lovely sound. We will paint it someday, I am sure of that.

Our first stop in Paola was the D'Marie Gallery owned by a warm, friendly woman, D'Marie, a transplant from New Mexico. She has taken one of the little buildings across the street from the town square and turned it into a wonderful gallery! I love seeing contemporary art in older buildings, there is something about the blending of old and new that is perfect, and D'Marie has accomplished wonders. Her current show is worth the drive to Paola! Check out her web page at http://www.dmariegallery.com/.

Our next stop was for lunch and something cold to drink! Molly's Table had been reccomended to me and it just a few steps around the corner from the gallery. Once again, a terrific job of using an old building and making it a fun place to spend an hour or so! The food was delicious! The service was great. We sat for quite awhile, soaking in the atmosphere of the quaint restaurant, the air conditioning and iced tea!

Our next stop was Casa Somerset, a Bed and Breakfast being built by my good friends, Mike and Christine Hursey. It is so close to being completed, then they will do the landscaping and it will be quite a destination! They have a vineyard, a lake and this beautiful 3 story Tuscan villa! And you should see the 2 kitchens they have put in! Unbelievable! Check their website/blog at http://www.casasomerset.com/.

All in all, the 5 of us, Ada Koch, Vicki Johnston, Audrey Benskin, Maria Johnson and I had a really good day! We will return to Paola again, there is just something about a little old town with a square in the middle! Next time we are going to try Beethoven's #9 Restaurant, right by the square. The food is German, Arch would have approved!